Change of Heart
by FullmetalShortOne
Summary: All those years of him being her subordinate and she had never saw him as anything but the man Melissa had always talked about:the pervert,the jerk, the slimy player. Maybe he was and she was blind to it…or maybe Melissa Mao was a liar.Pairing Test Story!
1. Chapter 1

**PLEASE READ THIS!**

**Authors Note:** I know I haven't posted a story in ages! I'm so sorry. College eats up all my time. I don't know if I will ever get around to finishing "Trapped in Skin". I really just don't have the motivation right now. However, this idea has been gnawing at my brain for about a year now and I decided to give it a shot. This is just a preiview of what I would like to write. In actuality I will go back and start at the night Sousuke left and show the entire relationships progression up to this point and on from that point. So this is more like a teaser of what I may eventually write into a full KurzXTessa fic that will be MUCH better than what you are about to read.

I haven't seen any of this couple. Which is shocking cause most of the people at least ONE person is into a "crack" pairing. Well, I guess I will be that one for this pairing. Haha! :) That's another reason why I'm just posting this little tid bit: to see how people react to it. So** PLEASE** review and let me know what you think of the pairing so I know if I should write more for them.

Thanks and Enjoy! 3

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><p>She sat alone at the bar sipping on an iced tea when he found her. The sniper didn't say a word as he took the bar stool next to hers.<p>

"Oh…Mr. Weber. I didn't hear you come in." she mumbled, wiping at her eyes and blinking rapidly. Why did she bother? It was obvious she had been crying again.

"Well wouldn't be much of a sniper if I made a lot of noise right?" he grinned and nudged her, "And I told you to just call me Kurz."

"I'm your superior officer. I will call you what I wish." She lifted up her chin and closed her eyes in her normal attempt to appear in control and powerful. He couldn't help but admire her for that. She tried so hard to be the leader she was expected to be. He still couldn't believe he had to call someone three years younger than himself 'Captain'. There was no doubt she deserved it, she was a great commander and he couldn't deny that fact. Still, it was just rather humorous to him and at times he had to try to keep from laughing when they were briefed on a mission. The main reason being the bruise he would receive to his rib cage from Melissa Mao's elbow.

"Fine have it you're way." he smirked. "I suppose you wont tell me why you were crying either huh? Even though I can probably guess." He shrugged and braced his head with his elbows on the counter.

"Jerk." Tessa murmured, starring at the condensation on her glass. Before she could reply any further the bartender approached them.

"Hey Weber, same as usual?" He asked.

Kurz waved his hand. "Nah, I'm not staying long."

"Suit yourself." The man shrugged and walked to the other side of the bar to wash mugs. He had been seeing the two of them here a lot over the past few months and this was the first time Weber had ever refused a drink. He picked up a mug and began to clean it slowly and carefully so he wouldn't miss any of the conversation from the clanking of glass. The old bartend knew a blooming relationship when he saw one. Although it was not his place to tell her who she should or shouldn't be with, he couldn't help but feel apprehensive about the meetings between the two youngsters. He had nothing against Weber, he liked him alright, he just would hate to see what would happen to the guy if the higher ups found out about it.

Tessa rubbed her thumb along the outside of the iced tea, watching the water droplets collect on her finger. "He loves her…doesn't he?" she said in quiet defeat. She looked up as the blonde slide his hand through his hair.

"Well, he doesn't realize it yet, but yeah. I would say he does. You know Sousuke, he's not the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to women. You know?"

"Unfortunately." she pursed her lips and looked away. It had been several months since the sergeant had stood up to the superiors and made it plain he would be staying in Japan and attending Jindai High School. She remembered when he told her he would always be there for her if she needed him. However, looking back on it, it was clear he hadn't meant any romantic sentiment in it. He was just being kind, dense Sousuke.

She thought she would be satisfied with him just being her friend. After all, he was gone from the ship for the majority and she had assumed that him being absent from her daily life would erase him from her mind. However, it had been the exact opposite. She missed him horribly. She started making a habit of coming to the bar when she felt like crying or just wanted to sulk in her misfortune. It just so happened that Kurz enjoyed coming to the bar at a similar time of night and ran into her there the night Sousuke had made his departure to Japan. She couldn't remember having a legitimate conversation with him before that day. In her depression and bitterness she ended up telling him exactly what she thought of Kaname Chidori, Jindai High School, being Captain at seventeen and most of all….her feelings for Sousuke. He listened and didn't try to rationalize her complaints. Instead, he nodded every so often and handed her tissues. He even threw in joking remarks every so often to make her smile a little. Now that she thought about it…Kurz was…he was…

"You ever think about drinking some of that iced tea?"

She was pulled out of her thoughts from the sound of his voice. He was looking at her with a smile but his eyes screamed that he was concerned. She smiled. "I _was_ drinking it before _you_ showed up, thank you." She teased.

Kurz couldn't help but laugh. "Well, since I've shown up all you've done is stare at it. Are my looks just that impressive?" He winked.

"Hah! You wish!" She said that but she felt her face getting hot. Since she no longer had Sousuke to admire the blonde had slowly become more appealing over the last few months. After all, being on a ship with all older military men wasn't exactly the most stimulating sexual environment for a young teenage woman. Kurz was the next youngest soldier on ship besides herself, he was in great physical shape and he wasn't naïve with women like Sousuke. In fact, he was the polar opposite. She felt her face get even more flushed. _No! This is silly! I couldn't possibly…_She loved Sousuke...didn't she? She bit her lip and glanced up at him.

He was looking at her with an eyebrow raised. "You okay babe? You're being pretty quiet."

"Yes. I…I'm fine. Thank you." she was beginning to feel very uncomfortable. She needed to get away from him. Her body would relax once she had time to think about it. These odd feelings would go away if she left. Yes, they would leave.

"I need to go." She stood up abruptly. "I'll see you at the briefing tomorrow Sergeant Weber-"

"Hey! What? Hang on a sec.." She felt him grasp her arm gently and her heart sped up. _No, no no-_

"No!" she heard herself yell. She covered her mouth and was silent before continuing. "I'm sorry, I just need to go." She pulled away and fled from the room.

"Tessa! Hey wait! What the-" Kurz called out in an attempt to stop her. He soon found himself running after her. "Tessa!"

The bartender looked up from his washing to watch the young man leave the bar. "Well…here we go." He sighed, turning back to his task. "This is going to be trouble."

Tessa could hear him behind her as she fled down the corridor. It was late and she knew she couldn't make much noise. She tried to be as quiet as possible as she ran. Panicking, she tried to decided where to escape to. She couldn't go to her bed chamber, Mao would most likely be there. Smoking and drinking as per usual. She turned left and headed to the one place she was sure would be empty and off limits to the under ranking man chasing her. She took out her key and fumbled with it. She wasn't fast enough because as the door opened to the briefing room she felt him grab her shoulder. "Holy…crap…" he panted. "For not fighting in the field you sure are in shape…." His grasp was firm and she found herself unable to move.

"Mr. W-Weber…" She grimaced at her studder, " I don't want to talk to you right now."

"Yeah, caught the hint." He turned her around to look at him, "And my name is Kurz. I told you that. Why is it so awful calling me by my first name Tessa?"

She couldn't look at him. "Please go." she mumbled. She felt her face getting warm again and wanted to run. Maybe Mao wasn't in her room….

"I'll leave when you tell me why _you_ left." She could feel his eyes watching her carefully. Those sharp sapphire eyes that could spot a target miles away. It was like he could see through her. _How did this happen? _

"No! I'm not! I just had to….I just..I.." she felt tears welling in her eyes. "I don't know!" she cried, pulling away from him and backing into the dark room. She waited a moment before she looked up at him. Her face was flushed heavily and she knew he could see how nervous she was. At first, he just looked confused. Then she saw him smile. He started walking toward her slowly.

"Wow…Mel is gonna kick my ass." He shook his head and chuckled.

"W-what? What are you talking about?" Tessa asked breathlessly, her heart speeding up more the closer her got. He was standing in front of her. She could only make out the outline of him from the faint light of the hallway. He was so much taller than she'd realized.

"No really Tess. You're gonna have to change what unit I'm in…and Mardukas ? Hell, I don't even wanna think about that but it cant be helped." He shrugged.

"What?" She breathed. "What are you..you talking…"

Her words left her as he leaned in and placed his lips on hers.

She had never been kissed before and it was not what she had expected. She had always imagined Sousuke kissing her but instead it was Kurz who was wrapping his hands around her waist and pulling her into him. Her brain fogged and she couldn't breathe. Her heart was racing and she felt hot all over. She felt one of his hands grasp her smaller hand and she took hold of it. All of her body felt numb except for her lips pressing and moving against his. When he pulled away she looked up at him with shock. She took in gulps of air from not breathing and swallowed. "Why…why did you do that?"

He chuckled and raised his eyebrows. "Do you really need to ask? "

She began to piece it together in her mind. She had heard how he talked about her with the men on ship. She knew they all thought she was attractive but Kurz had always been very open about saying so. He had always praised her, believed in her when no one else did, and helped her whenever she needed it(even if his opinions of swimsuits were somewhat fetishlike and sexist). She remembered the night Sousuke took off for Japan and how he had comforted her at the bar. All the times after that over the past couple months when he had held her late at night when she cried, made her laugh when she was feeling depressed, talked to her when she couldn't sleep. She had never thought of it before because he always seemed so nonchalant about it but…

"You…." she met his gaze. "Kurz…you…"

She was cut off again by his kiss. She reached for something to hold, eventually grasping his suspenders to keep herself from collapsing from shaking. It was incredible how he knew just where to touch her to make her want more. All those years of him being her subordinate and she had never saw him as anything but the man Melissa had always talked about: the pervert, the asshole, the slimy player. Maybe he was and she was blind to it…or maybe Melissa Mao was a liar.

Whatever the case, she didn't really seem to care at this moment. She pushed up on her tip toes and that's when she heard something that made her blood run cold:

The sound of footsteps echoing down the hall.

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><p><strong>PLEASE REVIEW<strong>. I'm not just saying that cause I want petty attention. I want critique of the pairing and if you want me to continue this idea. :) Flames are accepted but ignored. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors Note: **Since, I already have it written up I'll go ahead and post the next chapter even though I haven't gotten many reactions yet Like it? Dislike it? Why? Are they staying in character? Are they getting too OOC? How so? Let me know! Thank you! :)

Okay I'm done now. Enjoy!

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><p>Before Kurz could process what was happening, Tessa shoved herself away and smoothed out her uniform that had gotten disheveled. He heard the footsteps in the hall and looked at her with alarm.<p>

Tessa moved around him and walked toward the door. Kurz was not stupid enough to follow. He had an idea of what she was doing. He quickly moved to the wall as quietly as possible and waited. When he heard Tessa speak it was completely composed.

"Good evening Commander Mardukas."

_ Shit! _Kurz cursed to himself, _Of all the people who could have been-_

"Good evening Captain. I was making my late night rounds and heard a disturbance, I thought I would come investigate."

Kurz held his breathe.

Tessa didn't miss a beat. "Oh, I apologize. I'm so scatterbrained today. I thought I forgot something in the briefing room."

"What did you think you forgot ma'am?" He asked with genuine interest.

She looked down at her uniform and tried to come up with something quickly. _What could I have forgotten? My pen? Yes! _"My PEN! Yes, My pen. I thought I had lost it but it's right here." She smiled, holding up the writing utensil.

His beady eyes looked over her suspiciously. "I see. With all due respect ma'am, that could have waited until tomorrow."

"Yes, I realize that. I'm terribly sorry. I just couldn't shake the thought of it. I had to know...you know?" Tessa glanced toward the room awkwardly and brushed a loose lock of hair behind her ear.

"No need to apologize Captain. I will close up here if you are finished." He was already moving toward the door.

She stepped in front of him as gracefully and calmly as she could. "I wouldn't want to disturb your rounds any further Commander. I will take care of it." She smiled sweetly at him in hopes he would take the hint that she was fine and he should go.

"Very well." He replied. "Have a pleasant evening." He saluted her.

"Thank you. You as well." She nodded at him and watched as he continued his way down the hall. She waited until he had turned the corner before she walked back into the room. It was extremely dark now that her eyes were unfocused. "Mr. Web-" she corrected herself, "Kurz?….Where are you?"

She jumped when she felt him hug her from behind. His breath was warm in her ear as he whispered, "Nice cover. I thought I was dead for a second."

Her breathe caught and a tingling sensation ran down her spine. The after feeling of him was still lingering on her lips and she was amazed the Commander hadn't noticed. It had felt so obvious to her what she had just been doing.

"That was too close."

"Come on babe! You're the captain! What could they possibly do?" He asked, knowing very well what they could do.

She was the leader of this ship but there were government men in higher positions that would not approve of fraternization. It could ruin her reputation and possibly cost Kurz his job. She had never gotten to the point with Sousuke that she had to think about that. The farthest she had went with him was in her dreams. Tessa realized she couldn't risk it. It would be better to have him around but not be intimate. Yes, she could live with that. She would have to if she wanted to keep him in her life. In all honesty, it was hard imagining a life without him now. She knew what she had to say.

"We should act like this never happened."

After the words came out...it hurt her more than she had expected. She closed her eyes and waited for him to let go of her.

His forehead creased slightly and his eyes narrowed. "Is that Tessa talking or "Captain of Mithril" Testarossa?" A bitter tone crept into his voice and he released her. She couldn't help the tears that started welling up in her eyes.

"That's not fair!" She turned to face him. Trying to keep her voice down, she whispered, "What am I supposed to do? I am in charge of the well being of soldiers under my command!"

Kurz looked at her in a way that made her fidget and avoid his gaze. "What are you really afraid of Tessa?" He hadn't noticed his voice was rising. "Well?... Say something!"

His anger startled her. She knew he had a temper at times but he had never raised his voice to her before. Looking over,she noticed everyone could probably hear them._ No!_ She quickly walked over, flipped on the light and shut the door. This was not going to be resolved quietly. "Do you want to wake the entire submarine!" she snapped. "Don't you understand what could happen to you if they knew what we just did!"

"I don't care!"

"Well I do!" She cried. "You're a good soldier and I will not let you suffer for my mistakes! Please! Just let me explai-"

"I'm a mistake now?"

"No!…Yes! I mean-…That's not the point!" Tessa fumbled. She couldn't think clearly. It was odd, she was so used to thinking under pressure but she kept drawing blanks for how to explain to him how she felt.

"Then what _is _the point Teletha!"

Her frustration reached a new limit when she heard him say her full first name. "Don't you dare call me that! I am your _Captain_!" She was face to face with him at this point, seething with anger.

She had expected him to scream at her, to tell her he would call her that if he wanted to and that she wasn't just a Captain to him anymore. She realized that was secretly what she had wanted him to say all along.

However, instead of that, she watched Kurz's eyes stare intently at her and all he said in reply was, "And I guess that's all you want to be." Then he stormed past her into the empty hallway, slamming the door behind him.

She stood helpless and alone in the briefing room. The sound of the door was still echoing off the walls. Her chest felt heavy and she couldn't help the tears that poured from her eyes. She hadn't felt this way since the day Sousuke left. She waited until she was sure he was gone and made her way to the door. She quickly exited, locked it and headed for her living quarters.

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><p>Melissa Mao was sprawled out on the beige couch with cigarette in hand when Tessa arrived. Beer cans were stacked on the small coffee table and she was laughing at something on the television. Tessa entered as quietly as she could but Melissa still noticed her.<p>

"Hey kiddo. What's up? You look like you just got hit by a truck."

"It's nothing." she mumbled. She then looked at the Sergeant Major more closely, "I told you not to smoke in here Melissa! Why can't you follow that one rule?"

"Relax. I turned the vents on." Mel stated, as if that fixed how the scent still would cling to the furniture for days after she was gone.

"Gee, Thanks." Tessa muttered bitterly. She stripped off her uniform down to her underwear. "I'm taking a shower."

"'Kay." Mel waved. Once she heard the water running she sighed. "Poor girl. Still bummed about Sousuke…" she curled up onto the couch and took a swig of beer. "Hahaha! God I love this show."

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><p>Tessa let the steaming hot water run over her. Despite the argument, she was still trying to burn the image of Kurz kissing her out of her mind. Even the memory of his touch had her blushing. The way his hands snaked down her waist to find her hips and pull her into him. The sensation of his lips moving with hers with such hunger. The feeling of barely being able stand from the intensity of what he was doing to her. It was so unfathomable that this had actually taken place between them. She should have noticed the signs. Then again, maybe she had and just hadn't wanted to admit it. As she tried to erase the vivid images, more memories started to flood her mind. One in particular came floating to the surface…<p>

They had pulled up at a port that afternoon to re-supply. It had been weeks since Tessa could say she had stepped on a dock. As she walked off of the sub into the night air she felt a sense of freedom. It felt wonderful. Then, as her thoughts often traveled in those days, she thought of Sousuke on dry land in Japan. Her heart instantly sank and she began to walk down the dock with less enthusiasm. She reached the end and took a seat on the edge to admire the night sky. It was so daunting and immense. She felt so small in comparison.

"Hey, mind if I join ya?" said a voice.

"Oh! Sergeant Weber…no not at all." She plastered on a fake smile and patted the place next to her, "have a seat."

"Don't mind if I do." He smiled and sat next to her. "So, why are you sitting out here all by herself?"

"Just getting some fresh air and thinking I guess…" She shrugged.

"About Sousuke." He said. It was not a question. He already knew she was.

Tessa sighed and shook her head in regret. "I never should have told you all that last week."

"Hey, it's fine! Don't waste your time worrying about it. I haven't said a word." He crossed his finger over his heart. "I swear. Your secrets about Kaname's big ass are safe with me."

She gasped. " Mr. Weber! I didn't say that!" _Did she? _She couldn't remember all she had blabbered on about that night.

Kurz laughed. "Well, something to that effect anyway." Oddly enough, his casual and light demeanor had Tessa not only smiling but laughing a little as well. She hadn't done that in a while. _Melissa never mentioned how funny he is_.

"You want some?" Kurz asked, holding out the beer he was drinking.

"Umm…I.." she hesitated. She wasn't technically on duty at the moment. Besides, she was really her own boss in many rights but… "I shouldn't."

"Oh come on! Live a little!" he smiled, waving the can in front of her.

She took it from him and said "Melissa was right. You are a bad influence." before taking a drink. It was followed by her spitting it out into the ocean below, coughing and wiping at her mouth fervently. "UGH! You drink that for fun?"

"Nah, I drink it to take the edge off." he laughed. "It's not so bad once you get used to it." He finished off the can and crushed it between his palm and the wooden dock.

"I would rather not get used to it."

"Not gonna lie to ya, that's probably a good idea." He told her, "You have enough on your mind without alcohol getting involved."

They sat in silence for a moment before Tessa had a thought, "Why did you come out here?"

"Same reason as you babe. I needed some air." He stood up and stretched.

She glared up at him. "Don't call me babe."

"Okay, Tessa."

She let out an exasperated sigh, "_Captain_ Tessa."

"Okay, okay. I get it. "Captain of Mithril" Testarossa." He turned to leave. "Have it your way."

As he walked away she called out, "You know, this could count as insubordination!" All she heard in response was laughter. _Ugh. He sure knows how to ruffle my feathers._ She thought in a huff. She turned around and looked up at the night sky once more. For some reason….it didn't seem as daunting as before….

The hot water of the shower was still running over her body and it was beginning to make her sleepy. Shutting the water off and grabbing a towel, she exited the bathroom. She smiled at the memory of that night but then felt even more torn than before. She just needed a good nights sleep. Things would be better in the morning. She hoped.

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><p>I know what you are thinking: Drama already? Really? REALLY?<p>

Yes. What's a fanfiction without drama? NOTHING I TELL YOU. _NOTHING_. :)


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